The South King Fire & Rescue District could save up to $1 million over six years if voters approve Proposition 1 on the Aug. 21 primary election ballot, according to Chief Al Church.

Proposition 1, a property tax levy lid lift measure, would allow the fire district that serves Des Moines and Federal Way to charge up to $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value for the next six years.

In the past the district has run the levy lid measure every year. But a change in state law now allows the fire district to run the measure once every six years.

The district has been required to run the measure annually for the past six years. Each time the levy lid lift has been approved by 60 to 70 percent margins, Church said.

Last year, it cost $201,000 to run the election. Church estimates that over six years, taxpayers could save $600,000 to $1 million. The money the district saves on elections could go to fire services.

In 2001, state voters approved Initiative 747 that limits the taxes the department can collect to no more than 1 percent above the amount collected the year before without a public vote.

But South King's board of commissioners have decided each year that a 1 percent increase would not be enough to maintain current services so they have placed a levy-lid lift request on the ballot.

Approved funds are "used very efficiently," according to Church.

Six months after the Federal Way and Des Moines departments merged, Federal Way's fire rating was raised from Class 3 to Class 2, Church said.

Des Moines was raised from a Class 4 to Class 3.

Seattle and Bellevue are the only other departments in the state with a Class 2 rating, he added. There are no cities with a Class 1 rating in Washington.

The merged district serves over 150,000 residents within a 42-square-mile area.

While Church cannot legally advise voters to approve the proposition, Capt. Gordon Olson, president of the department's firefighters union, said he can.

"We are asking for a yes vote," Olson noted. "The firefighters are really excited that the money will be used efficiently enough to put on good programs. We haven't had stable funding for bigger and better programs."

Approval of the levy lid lift could help decrease response times for aid and fire calls, Olson said.

Church added that without the levy lid lifts, the department might had to eliminate the hazardous materials, rescue and marine teams as well as public education programs.

Kendra Kay, public education officer, said department staffers spoke to 5,200 elementary students last year about fire safety.

A fall prevention program for seniors has allowed many older residents to remain in their homes, Kay noted.

She has also been involved in a "fire stoppers" project that intervenes with youths who may be at risk of setting fires.

"That has been very impactful," Kay concluded.